Don’t talk. Keep quiet about the hard stuff.
Don’t feel. Emotions make people uncomfortable—better to hide them.
Don’t trust. People will let you down, so guard your heart.
Don’t need. Be strong, self-sufficient, and never “too much.”
You may have seen the recent reel online — a woman smiling while the voiceover says:
“You’re good at pretending you’re okay… until you’re not.”
It’s raw, it’s real, and it touches something deep inside many of us.
Emotions can feel overwhelming, confusing, and even untrustworthy at times. Many of us have learned to push them aside or judge ourselves for having them in the first place. But as authors and clinicians like Jennie Allen, Dr. Curt Thompson, Dr. Daniel Siegel, Dr. Larry Crabb, Lysa TerKeurst, and Aundi Kolber remind us, our emotions are not the enemy. They are invitations—signposts that can lead us toward deeper connection with ourselves, others, and God.
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Sometimes it’s like we are all pulling each other over the finish line!
The end of the school year is loud.
It’s filled with permission slips, class parties, end-of-year gifts, finals, field days, and calendar chaos. It’s also filled with a quiet ache—a subtle exhaustion only moms seem to recognize. One season closes, another begins—and somehow, you’re expected to hold it all together.
In a world that often tells us to push past pain and "keep it together," many Christians quietly struggle with internal fragmentation—dissociation, emotional numbness, and lingering shame. These inner realities are not signs of spiritual failure, but indicators of deeper wounds that need gentle, Christ-centered healing.
Books like Boundaries for the Soul by Alison Cook and Kimberly Miller and The Soul of Shame by Dr. Curt Thompson offer powerful frameworks for understanding these struggles in light of God’s redemptive love. Together with Scripture, they paint a hopeful picture: God not only sees our hidden pain but invites us into a journey of integration and renewal.
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Understanding the window of tolerance is crucial for trauma survivors, as it offers a framework for recognizing when they might be operating outside of their window and struggling to manage overwhelming emotions.
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Link to Podcast for The Connected Life with Abi and Justin Stumvoll
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Setting up a meeting with a therapist or mental health counseling professional is something that some people...
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New intakes and a fresh outlook and focus!
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We are back at it in early January. I am writing after taking some time away with my family for the holiday season. It was a great trip to see family and create memories
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I am so glad to kick off the fall season in Celina, TX. There is so much activity happening in the #downtowncelinasquare these days.
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Are you a parent that is just as concerned about raising your child the right way? Perhaps this post is geared toward raising boys, but I want to encourage all parents to consider the positive effect of raising their children in a Godly way.
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A poem.
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What not to do in Costco when you are attempting to be a hero!
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A Woman's Worth and Beauty in a Marriage: The profound and deep waters only a husband can mend are something that are a ministry and a calling of each man in a Godly relationship with his wife.
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Some would agree that we gather together at various times of the year to make some connection with our currents, our pasts, and our futures. Invariably the birth of a new year is something that causes me to pause a little and remember that time is not standing still, that there is a re birth that could happen, and that I need to continue to seek out the goals and remember the time.
Does it all matter? Do I matter? What does God say about matter???
At the end of this post I welcome feedback as it is a short one and I am asking for an interactive response about what it could mean if we mattered to ourselves, each other, and to God.
Join me in the dialogue.
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The link between loneliness and addiction. Johann Hari explains in his TED talk about how this was considered and how applying social concepts in Portugal, there was a remarkable difference in the country’s outlook and heroin population.
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